Electromagnetically actuated sign structure



Oct. 14, 1952 v. WATKINS 2,614,145

ELECTROMAGNETICALLY ACTUATED SIGN STRUCTURE Filed 001;. 25, 1950 FINVENTOR.

the advertising message I2.

Patented Oct. 14, 1952 f f fu'Nl'rso STATES PATENT OFFICEELECTROMAGNETICALLY ACTUATED' SIG-N STRUCTURE I Victor L. Watkins,Salina, Kans.

Application October 25, 1950', Serial No. 191,986

(Cl. 172-l26) 6 Claims.

This invention relates to sign structures and particularly electricalanimated advertising displaying devices and has. for its primary aim theprovision of such a structure wherein is included a support and a rockerelement mounted thereon to motivate an advertised article across theface of the said support whereon advertising material may be printed orotherwise displayed.

A further aim of the instant invention is to provide a sign structurethat is electrically operated through the employment of a pair ofsolenoids alternately influential upon a weight which shifts from oneside of the means for pivotally mounting a rocker element to the otherside thereof and upon which rocker element is freely carried formovement therealong a shiftable unit upon which either an. actualarticle being advertised, a replica thereof or other article is mounted.

This invention has for a yet further object A the provision. of anelectrically-operated animated sign which includes a rocker element uponwhich is mounted a freely movable carriage shiftable along a path oftravel to each. side of the pivotal point of the said rocker element andwhichjhas for its path of travel defined between a pair of. normallyopen electrical switches that are alternately closed by the carriage toenergize specially-disposed solenoids which shift a weight on'therockerelement from one side of its pivotal point to the other for the purposeof tilting the rocker element and causing the said carriage to move bythe action of gravity from one end of the rocker element to the other.

Details of construction and the manner of operation will appear duringthe course of the following specification, referring to the accompanyingdrawing, wherein:

I ig'. l'is a front elevational view of a sign structure made inaccordance with the present invention.

Fig. 2' is a top plan view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, longitudinal, vertical,

sectional. view through the rocker element per se taken on line III-1'IIof Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, enlarged, detailed cross-sectional view takenon line IV-IV of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary, detailed, enlarged, cross-sectional view takenon line V-V of Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary, cross-sectional, detailed view takenon line VI-VI of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 7 is a wiring diagram illustrating the electrical circuit forming apart of the sign structure.

The preferred embodiment of the invention chosen for illustrationcomprises a support III which, in this instance, is a fiat,vertically-disposed, wall-like unit, upon the front surface whereof maybe painted or otherwise marked Upon this support I!) is pivotallymounted a rocker element. I4

formed as illustrated in Figs. 4, 5 and 6, so far as its cross-sectionalcontour is concerned, and designed to confine withinits inwardly-facing,channel-shaped, longitudinal, opposed, spacedapart side walls It ashiftable unit broadly desighated. by the numeral l8. and including acarriage 20 having rollers 22 thereon to traverse the track portion ofrocker element. 44 which, in this instance, is merely the upper surfaceofthe floor of element l4 extending between the channel.- shaped sidewalls [6, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 6.

This carriage 20 supports one of the actual articles being advertised, areplica thereof or other article; and, in the illustrated. form. of theinvention, this article is a bottle 24 removably secured to carriage 20by a threaded spindle 26. Through this type of interconnection betweencarriage 20 and bottle 24, the latter may be removed and replaced withanother article whenever the advertising material l2 on. support It ischanged. It is desirable in this connection to have a definite. relationbetween the. material 12 on support I!) and article 24.

The example clearly shown in Fig. l is typical, in. that a soft drink.is. advertised by the wording l2 and a replica of the. bottle of. suchsoft drink is mounted on. carriage 20.

Rocker element i4 is pivotally mounted. on support I0 through the mediumoi a tubular shaft 28 that has its one end flanged as at 30 and theopposite end threaded as at 32. A flanged bushing 34 receives a portionof the length of shaft 28 and is threaded into a lock-nut 36, as'shownin Fig. 4. Nut 38 is threaded upon the outer most end of shaft 28 tocooperate with bushing 34 ingripping support Ill.

This means for pivotally mounting the element M on support i0 is quiteeffective andlocated at the longitudinal median point of element l4 topermit tipping thereabout from the position show-n in full lines of Fig.1 to the position. illustrated in dotted lines of said figure. Thetipping movement is arrested by pins 40 mounted on support Ill.

As rocker element 14 is tilted, carriage 20 moves therealong, and thetilting motion is established byapparatus on the rocker element whichserves to oscillate the same about the mounting means shown in Fig. 4.This appara tus comprises a solenoid 42 on one side of. the point ofoscillation and a solenoid 44 on the 0p posite side thereof. A bar 46having a weight 48 at each end thereof moves between solenoids 42 and 44and such movement is enough to insure that the total weight of bar 46and weights 48 will operate rocker element It about its pivotal support.When solenoid 44 is energized, the rod and weights are in the positionshown in Fig. 3. Weights 48 constitute movable cases for the solenoidsand each has a flange 49 thereon serving as a stop.

The apparatus for oscillating the rocker element, also includes a stop50 at one end of rocker element I4 and a stop 52 at the opposite endthereof. Each of said stops 50 and 52 includes a switch 54 and 56respectively in circuit with a source of electrical power supplied bylines 58 and 66. These switches 54 and 56 are normally open but closewhen carriage of the shiftable umt I8 reaches the end of its path oftravel where said switches 54 and 56 are located.

Switch 54 is in circuit with solenoid 44 in the manner illustrated inFig. 7 so that when this switch 54 is closed, solenoid 44 will beenergized. Switch 56 is in circuit with solenoid 42 so that, when thisswitch 56 is closed, solenoid 42 will be energized. The wiresconstituting the circuit diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 7 areaccommodated by the mechanical structure shown in Figs. 4 and 6; and,when such wiring is so mounted in the sign assembly, no length thereofis visible to the observer of the sign and the lead wires enter throughshaft 28. A housing 62 encases solenoids 42 and 44, the rod 46, and theweights 48 thereon.

In practice, solenoids 42 and 44 are of the 110 volt A. C. type, anddirect connection to the ordinary supply lines 58 and 60 may beaccomplished without the employment of a transformer. The material fromwhich the parts illustrated is made is selectable from a wide variety ofsubstances and the size of the sign may be varied to suit the problem inhand.

In operation, assuming, for example, that the parts of the sign are asillustrated in Fig. 1, switch 54 will be closed by carriage 20 bearingthereagainst. Switch 56 is open. Closed switch 54 causes energization ofsolenoid 44, whereupon weight 48 constituting its core will be attractedthereby and move from a position outside solenoid 44 to a positiontherein as shown in Figs. 3 and 7 which, manifestly, shifts the overallweight to one side of the pivotal support between rocker element I4 andsupport ID.

This shifting of weight causes element I4 to tip toward the positionshown in dotted lines of Fig. 1, and, under such condition, the unitincluding article 24 will move along element I4 toward switch 56,whereupon the closing thereof will draw the Weight constituting its coreand, therefore, its entire weight of rod 46 and weights 48 back to aposition where a reversal of the ac tion just set down will occur. Solong as current is supplied to the sign structure, oscillation of rockerelement I4 will occur and the shiftable unit I8 will reciprocate throughthe path of travel between stops 50 and 52.

The animation of this portion of the sign and the disposition of theadvertised article 24 directly in front of the material I2 explanatorythereof on support I0 creates an advertising sign having a high degreeof attraction with a minimum expense of operation, maintenance andmanufacturing cost.

It is realized that sign structures having physical characteristicsdifferent from those shown and described may be made without departingfrom the spirit of the invention or scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to besecured by Letters Patent is:

1. A sign structure of the character described comprising a support; anelongated rocker element carried by the support; means for pivotallymounting the element on said support adjacent to the longitudinal medianpoint of the former; a unit shiftably carried by the rocker element forfree reciprocating travel past the said mounting means; stops for theunit defining the ends of its path of travel; apparatus on the rockerelement for oscillating the same about said mounting means, including aweight assembly positionable with respect to the mounting means to tipthe rocker element; means for drawing the weight assembly to positionswith respect to the mounting means whereby to tip the rocker element;and parts joining the stops and the said drawing means, adapted toactuate the drawing means to dispose the weight assembly to a positionwith respect to the mounting means whereby to tip the rocker element andshift the unit to the opposite side of the mounting means from thatoccupied by the said unit when the unit is in engagement with one of thestops.

2. A sign structure as defined in claim 1, wherein the stops compriseelectrical switches closable by the unit when thereagainst, and thedrawing means comprises solenoids in circuit with the switches.

3. A sign structure as defined in claim 1, wherein the rocker elementincludes a track. and the shiftable unit is a carriage, having rollersdesigned to traverse the track.

4. A sign structure as defined in claim 1, wherein the shiftable unitcomprises a carriage having rollers thereon, adapted to traverse thenormally upper surface of the rocker element.

5. A sign structure as defined in claim 1, wherein the stops eachcomprises a. normally open electrical switch at each end respectively ofthe rocker element and in circuit with a source of electrical power andclosable by the unit when thereagainst, and the drawing means comprisesa pair of solenoids in the circuit, one of the solenoids being to oneside of the mounting means for the rocker element, the other solenoidbeing to the opposite side of the said mounting means, said weightassembly being shiftably mounted between the solenoids.

6. A sign structure as defined in claim 1, wherein the stops eachcomprises a normally open electrical switch at each end respectively ofthe rocker element and in circuit with a source of electrical power andclosable by the unit when thereagainst, and the drawing means comprisesa pair of solenoids in the circuit, one of the solenoids being to oneside of the mounting means for the rocker element, the other solenoidbeing to the opposite side of the said mounting means, said weightassembly being shiftably mounted between the solenoids, said circuitbeing arranged to cause energization of the solenoid to one side of themounting means when the switch on the rocker element to the oppositeside of the mounting means is closed by the shiftable unit beingthereagainst.

VICTOR L. WATKINS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,150,169 Bryant Aug. 17, 19151,235,579 Lincoln Aug. '7, 1917 2,045,864 Miller June 30, 1936

